Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent steps he has taken to help support small and medium-sized enterprises in (a) Northern Ireland and (b) the rest of the UK with increased costs.

The new Energy Bills Discount Scheme (EBDS), which is replacing the Energy Bill Relief Scheme (EBRS) from 1 April 2023, will provide eligible businesses and other non-domestic energy users, including small and medium sized businesses, across the UK with a discount on high energy bills until 31 March 2024.

The UK Government and the devolved administrations support services providing advice and help for SMEs. Businesses in Northern Ireland can find resources on https://www.nibusinessinfo.co.uk/. They can also call Invest Northern Ireland for free advisory services (0800 181 4422).

More broadly, the Government has brought forward a number of measures which support smaller businesses over the past year. This includes cutting the cost of employment for hundreds of thousands of small businesses by increasing the Employment Allowance and helping smaller businesses access finance by extending the Recovery Loan Scheme.